Orthopedic treatment for the correction of skeletal problems due to trauma, injury, disease, deformity or the like can include orthopedic surgery for implanting one or more orthopedic devices. Orthopedic surgery is now commonly used to implant artificial joints, mend bones and correct spinal problems. The manufacture of orthopedic implants such as joint replacement devices and spinal devices comprises a large sector of the orthopedic industry.
Because of the configuration of some orthopedic implants, various types of orthopedic implants need to be assembled before use. Sometimes assembly is accomplished before implantation and sometimes assembly is accomplished during implantation. In either case, the parts or components of the orthopedic implant need to be joined in a reliable, accurate and dependable manner that allows the assembly and retention of the components. Thus, a structure is necessary to allow the components of the orthopedic implant to be joined and retained in a reliable, accurate and dependable manner.
In view of the above, it is desirable to provide a structure to join and retain components or parts of an orthopedic implant in a reliable, accurate and dependable manner. It is thus an object of the present invention to provide a structure and/or manner to join one part of an orthopedic implant with another part of the orthopedic implant in order to hold the parts together during use.